Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba inaugurated the 18th annual general meeting (AGM) of the Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) today. On the occasion, the prime minister mentioned that providing vaccines against the coronavirus to all citizens free of cost was the top priority of his government.
PM Deuba added that vaccination against the COVID-19 was necessary so that economic activities can gather pace in the country and also development activities can take place which have been hampered by the outbreak of the pandemic. “We have prioritised development but prior to that we have to focus more on saving people’s lives,” he reiterated.
He also mentioned that one of the biggest challenges of the coronavirus pandemic was that people are not able to move about freely and this is the reason why the government is focused on free vaccination for all citizens.
The prime minister added the ‘Make in Nepal’ initiative which the CNI has launched to increase the production and sales of domestic products will go a long way in helping the industrialisation efforts of the country.
Meanwhile, Finance Minister Janardhan Sharma stated that the coronavirus pandemic had made people realise the importance of a self-sustaining economy. He also mentioned that the ‘Make in Nepal’ initiative will help lay the foundation for a self-sustaining economy.
Minister Sharma said the country’s economy at the moment is in a weak position and the government will take the private sector into confidence while drafting economic policies. He stated the government will emphasise on enhancing the competitiveness of domestic products.
President Emeritus of CNI, Binod Chaudhary, said the confederation had been working as an important think tank of the country. He mentioned the CNI would look at successful examples across the globe and learn from them to further enhance the activities of the organisation.
